Identity Crisis
by Lost Before the Dawn
Summary: A mysterious music box falls into the hands of an unsuspecting girl. The secrets of this box force her to realize that she isn't who she thought she was, and that the truth isn't always what she wants to hear.
1. A Tale Of Old

TITLE: Identity Crisis

AUTHOR: Lost Before the Dawn

RATING: PG 13

A/N: Welcome to my first posted fic, Identity Crisis. First things first, I know how many fics there are about girls who get transported to ME and all sorts of stuff like that, but I don't want to hear it. I don't care how over done or clichéd that topic is. Don't judge it by that fact, you may find this story enjoyable. After all, no matter how many clichéd fics are out there, they are all different an unique in individual ways. So I don't care if this idea is overdone, it is my fic and I like it and had fun writing it. I just hope you can enjoy it as well.

The next thing I want to say is about the whole Mary Sue issues I read about all over the place. I've even read fics where people describe each and every aspect of a Mary Sue. And according to those, a Mary Sue is any and every woman put into a fanfic, or any woman that happens to fall in love, or any woman who changes the world just a little bit. There are so many different descriptions of Mary Sues that to avoid them, one would have to not even put a female character into a story. So, all you so called 'Mary Sue hunters' out there, if this seems like a Mary Sue and you want to tell me, do me the favor of leaving and not even bothering me, because I don't care. Besides, as I have said before, there is no way of avoiding them. So just TRY to enjoy this fic and don't bother me about any Mary Sue issues. Thank you.

Everyone else will have to excuse my rudeness. I am just sick and tired of people dissing other authors of idiotic issues of Mary Sues and overdone ideas. I want everyone to enjoy this story and have a good time. Please review if you have something to say, I love hearing from you all. And CONSTRUCTIVE criticism is great! So enjoy!

_Italics denote a thought or a dream._

Chapter 1 – A Tale Of Old

"_Mysteries can be found around every corner, in every box. To find one, all you have to do is unwittingly look for it."_

_ Me_

"Mother! Mother!" Elenia turned around just as Silivren burst through the door to the library, interrupting her reading. She was being chased by her nurse. "Mother! Save me!" And she launched herself into her mother's arms.

"And what do I need to save you from?" Elenia asked, cradling her daughter who was clinging to her, shaking but not crying.

"Save me from Nurse, she wants me to go to bed, but I don't want to. There are scary things in the dark!"

"Shhh, Silivren, everything will be alright. There is nothing in the shadows of night, nothing at all."

"But I see them, every night! They won't leave me alone!"

"You are seeing nothing but shadows, young one." That is when an idea hit Elenia. "Would you like me to tell you a story? To help chase the shadows away?" Silivren nodded her head, her brown curls bouncing, as she cuddled up with her mother.

"Tell me my favorite, mother, the one about the Music Box." Elenia smiled as she began her tale.

"200 years ago, a journey began in a world called Earth, to continue in another. This journey came by happenstance to a young girl who had no hope for the future. This story is about a girl who was mistreated by many, abandoned by more, and loved by few. Her name was Rayne.

"She and her best friend where inside a large building, filled with many shops. This building was built of stone, as were most of the places in her world. The stone left her feeling trapped, but she ignored it. She was there to have fun, and to mend the holes her friendship, but things do not always go as planned."

Two girls and a boy walked into the mall. One shortest girl was in mostly pink; the other in all black, and the boy was covered in car grease. Quite an unusual trio. But that did not matter; the girl in pink and the boy were dating. The other felt like a third wheel.

"So, where to first Rayne?" The girl in pink, Bri, asked.

"Wherever." Rayne replied.

"Okay then." Bri said, grabbing Rayne's hand as well as her boyfriends, Jake. She led the way to Claire's, a store of pink fluff and feminine items. Rayne wrenched her hand free as Jake and Bri entered the store. Bri didn't look back as Rayne changed directions and headed towards another store, Spencer's. _I wonder how long it will take her to notice._ But before she could make it there, another store caught her eye.__

It was designed to represent renaissance times, with shields and swords on the door. Those were things that interested her, so she entered the store. It looked very old, dust covered everything, and there was a deep, dank smell in the air, like rotting wood.

The place was dark, and looked deserted. Nevertheless, Rayne started looking around the vast amounts of armory. She slowly walked from table to table, looking at all of the old antiques. After nearly ten minutes of browsing, someone cleared their throat.

"May I help you?" Rayne jumped and spun around. It was the store clerk. He was a stately old figure, with a nicely trimmed beard, bushy eyebrows, and short white hair that matched his casual white attire.

"Um, no, I was just looking around." She replied, hiding her surprise.

"Ah, yes. Browsing." He replied. He was looking at her strangely, as if appraising her. "Have you," he paused, "found something of interest?"

"No, not really." Rayne couldn't hold his gaze for very long, so she started glancing around at the nearest objects. A small silence ensued.

"I think I have something that you might like." He stated abruptly and walked over to the counter. She followed, her curiosity getting the best of her. The clerk withdrew from a drawer a small old box, made out of some dark polished wood. It was carved with strange symbols and vines. In the center of the lid were five larger symbols. He handed it to Rayne who gently held it, running her fingers over the symbols. She held the box to close to her face, inspecting a small crack that ran all around the edges of the box, clearly showing that the top came off. She tried to lift it, but to no avail.

"The lid is stuck." She stated, pulling at the lid again.

"Yes, it has been that way for many years. Obviously, the previous owner didn't want anyone else to discover its secrets." He paused, his blue eyes twinkling, "Though, I think you might be the one to make such a discovery." Rayne looked up at him. _That was an odd thing to say._

"How much?"

"I have never had a use for it and it has been sitting in my drawer for a very long time." He paused yet again, apparently thinking it over. "You, my dear, may have it." He smiled gently.

"Are you serious?" Rayne asked in astonishment. Not many people had ever given her a gift.

"Of course I'm serious. I do believe that box was made especially for you. It looks….right in your hands." He muttered quietly. "So, naturally, it is only right that you should have it."

Rayne was silent. She didn't really know what to say. "Thank you." She said and placed the box gently into her mini backpack. "Good Bye." She called as she left the store. _Strange man._

"Farewell, young one. We shall meet again."

_There were trees. Trees everywhere. She was surrounded by them, could not escape them. She ran, leaping gracefully over sticks and stones, hoping to find the way out. A sense of fear enveloped her as a strange pang of sadness pierced her heart. She missed someone, but whom?_

_ Her flight was cut short as she bumped into something and fell backwards. But she did not hit the ground. Rough arms locked themselves around her, pinning her arms to her sides. She looked into the face of her captor, but could not make out anything but crooked, yellow teeth grinning down at her._

_ She panicked as she was shoved to the ground, his mouth clamped onto hers in a forced kiss._

The ringing of the phone woke Rayne up. She cursed under her breath and removed the book stuck to her cheek. She had stayed up late, against her better judgment, reading. Groggily, she reached for the phone, but instead of grabbing it she knocked if off the table and sent it skidding across the floor.

With more cursing in every language she knew, Rayne got out of bed and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" She said, her voice cracking from sleep.

"Hey, idjit. Did you drop the phone again?" It was Bri. _Figures_.

Rayne forced a laughed. It was always better to go along with the supposedly playful insults, or else more personal ones may start.

"Why are you calling this early in the morning?" Rayne asked, clearly annoyed but hiding it well.

"Because I knew that you would be asleep."

"So you just wanted to wake me up?"

"Yep." A slight silence ensued as Rayne tried her best to hold in her annoyance.

"Oh yeah," Bri said, suddenly going serious. That was something that did not happen very often. "We need to talk."

"About what?" Rayne asked, also gaining a serious air.

"Jake and I broke up." She said, but she did not sound at all sad. "Again." But she did not sound happy either.

Rayne wasn't sure what to say. She had never liked Jake, thinking him a user of sorts, but every time they broke up Bri was crushed. She always believed Bri got too attached to guys, but was always there for her when she needed a friend, no matter how 'needy' she became.

"I'm….sorry." Rayne said, when in reality she was relieved. She had a gut feeling Jake was just using Bri; after all, he had forced her into a physically intimate relationship.

"That's okay." Bri replied, "Because I've already got a new boyfriend."

"What?" Rayne asked. How could she have gotten a new boyfriend so quickly? "Who is it?"

"Well, you know that guy you've been eyeing lately?" Bri asked. Rayne nodded, which wasn't a very smart thing to do since Bri couldn't see her. After a short silence, Bri continued. "Well, I asked him out."

"WHAT?!" It sounded like Bri actually flinched on the other end. Rayne had actually yelled more out of surprise than hurt. She had been eyeing this guy, but didn't think she liked him enough to be his girlfriend. At least she wasn't heartbroken; she just felt a little betrayed by Bri. But she would get over it, she always did.

"Are you angry?" Bri asked

"No, not really."

"Really? Because I've known you've liked him and all…."

"No," Rayne interrupted her, "Its okay. Really. I'm not mad."

"Are you sure?" The relief in her voice put a small smile on Rayne's face. At least one of them could be happy.

"Yes. Just have fun, and this time, be careful."

"Oh, you're the best! I have another call, so I'm going to go. Talk to you later."

"Bye." Rayne said and hung up the phone. She sat on the floor, contemplating the conversation. She put away the angry feelings from the mall. Bri was happy, and probably in love. She was going to be happy for her. Rayne thought love would never find her, but at least love had found her friend. Glancing at the clock she realized that she had to be leaving soon.

Rayne quickly dressed into her cut up black jeans and black T-shirt with fishnet sleeves. She was pulling on her boots when she looked at the clock again. She still had some time to kill. So she went to her computer to find some information on the mysterious box that had haunted her dreams. Maybe it could help get her mind off of things. So it was that she spent thirty minutes researching, but came up with no results.

Rayne sat back in her chair, frustrated. _What now?_ Then an idea came to her. She scanned the top and sides of the box and posted the pictures on various history and legend websites asking for any information on the origin of the box and a translation of the writing.

Shockingly enough, she received an email within minutes. She read it through, and then read it again. Surely this was a joke.

"Dear Miss Rayne,

I have information on that box of yours. It may come as some sort of a shock, but that is no ordinary box. It is an early version of a music box, dating back quite a long time ago. As a matter of fact, it is not even part of this world.

It is of elvish make, once belonging to an elf princess. There is not much I can say for her, most of her history is now lost to legend.

I have also taken the liberty and have translated the message for you. It says "By light of moon and ray of star, this is given to thee, by thy hopes and dreams thou shall reach eternity." But the largest symbols I cannot discern. A rather unusual message, but…."

It said much more about how he would like to study it, but she did not pay any attention to it, she was captivated by the message. It was a beautiful saying. She looked at the box and ran her fingers over the symbols. "By light of moon and ray of star, this is given to thee, by thy hopes and dreams thou shall reach eternity." She repeated. Something odd then happened. The box clicked, like that of a latch unlocking.

Rayne stared at the box sitting in front of her for a moment before she slowly reached out and picked it up. The lid felt loose, so she tried to open it again. This time the lid opened, swinging silently on silver hinges.

Some sort of beautifully enchanting music began to play, faintly at first, but soon it could be heard quite clearly. It was a strange song; never had Rayne heard such a tune, but she liked it. She closed her eyes and sighed in serenity. It drowned out all of her angry thoughts and lingering memories, leaving nothing but peace.

Finally, she decided to continue to explore the rest of the box. The inside of the it was lined with some sort of soft, dark blue velvet which cradled a silver necklace. The pendent was shaped into silver moon with a red rose nestled in the center with its green vines wrapping around the moon. And where the thorns sliced the moon, little ruby blood droplets could be seen. It was hanging from a sheer silver ribbon.

"Strange." Rayne said, captivated by the oddly beautiful pendent. "It seems…. familiar." She gently lifted the necklace from the box. It was surprisingly light for its size, and cool to the touch. She rubbed the dust off of the rose, freeing from it a surreal glow.

She tied the necklace around her neck and proceeded to admire it in the mirror. It looked strange against her casual clothes, almost unreal. She turned and slung her backpack over her shoulder and picked up the box. She felt a desire to repeat the saying on the box, so beautiful were those words. And she did so.

"By light of moon and ray of star, this is given to thee, by thy hopes and dreams thou shall reach eternity." Her words seemed to echo slightly. The wondrous song of the music box began to grow louder and louder, the ethereal light from the pendent began to glow brighter, all the while her words repeated themselves over and over, building up to something great.

Rayne screamed, the force of whatever power she had just unleashed was pressing upon her, forcing her to her knees and stealing the air from her lungs. The words of the box kept pounding through her head with unrelenting ferocity. It was so intense that she thought that her head was going to break, shatter into thousands of pieces.

The world began to spin around her; all the while she remained frozen in place, unable to do a thing. The tumult in her head was beyond any pain she had ever felt. Her body felt like it was freezing and burning at the same time. Then, as quickly as it began, it stopped.

Air surged back into Rayne's lungs with such force that it hurt to even try to breath. The relief in her head was too great. Her body felt exhausted from such an exertion. Unable to take it anymore, she collapsed, letting the quiet peace of the shadows envelop her.


	2. Identity Crisis

Disclaimer: I forgot to put this on the first chapter. So I will post it here now. I do not own anything except that which is not familiar in the Middle-Earth world (such as Rayne, the music box, the pendent, etc, those I own.) All rights remain with their respective creators, producers, etc.

A/N: I would like to thank everyone who read and reviewed the first chapter. I have received a lot of good feedback, and I can only hope that I do not disappoint you with this and future chapters. Until next week, your author: Lost Before The Dawn.

Chapter 2 – Identity Crisis

_…Please take all else away,_

_hear my cry, I beg, I plead, I pray…_

_…Fall afresh on me  
End this crisis of  
Identity…_

_Identity Crisis – Thrice_

The fist thing that registered in Rayne's mind was the sensation of something wet on her face. She groaned and turned her head, trying to rid herself of the wet feeling. When that failed, she lifted her hand to wipe it away only to realize that it was futile, her arms had no strength. .

Panic began to swell in her, but she forced it aside when something was pressed to her forehead again. Mustering all of the strength she could find, Rayne finally forced her eyes open.

She was surprised to see a young woman with golden hair and glistening green eyes gently dabbing her forehead with a damp cloth. "What the hell?" Rayne whispered, her voice hoarse.

The woman set the cloth down and smiled gently. "Welcome back to the land of the living." Rayne stared at the woman, shocked. After many minutes of staring, she finally averted her eyes to take in her surroundings.

"Where am I?" Rayne asked as she observed the room. It was overly adorned with decorative furniture of white wood and silver patterns, all of which looked extremely expensive/ "How did I get here?" She looked back at the woman. "And who are you?"

The smile vanished from the woman's face. "You do not remember me?"

Rayne lifted an eyebrow. "I know you?" The woman jumped to her feet, running towards the door. Rayne could hear the whispered conversation, but could not make out what they were saying. Finally, the woman returned, nearly shaking with worry. She was followed by an old man with a saddened look on his face.

The man pulled a nearby chair up to the edge of the bed. He began doing some strange tests on Rayne. It lasted for the better part of an hour before he sat back in the chair, somehow managing to look older.

"She is suffering from memory loss." The man said with a tired sigh. "I shall prepare some herbal tea, that should help." With that, he left.

"I do not suffer from memory loss." Rayne proclaimed to the blonde woman. "I'm fine. Now could you please tell me who you are and where I am? I want to get home before anyone notices I'm gone."

The woman's green eyes looked to the ground sadly before meetingRayne's blue ones again. She walked to the bed and sat down with a sad sigh. "I am Muina, your highness."

Rayne's eyes widened. "What did you say?" she asked.

Muina blinked at the question. "I said I am Muina."

"No, after that. What did you call me?"

"I….called you 'Your Highness'." Muina hesitated. "Are you sure you're alright?"

Rayne shook her head in amazement. "Why did you call me that?"

Because…you are our princess." She said, confused.

"What?" Rayne laughed nervously. "You got it all wrong. I'm not a princess." Rayne thought the idea funny, that she, an 18-year-old from the USA, could be mistaken for a princess.

"Yes you are." Muina said, confusion stretching each word. "You are Princess Evana."

'_Evana_,' Rayne thought, '_That sounds familiar. But, why do they think I'm her?_'

Muina lingered for a moment in confusion, before she curtsied deeply. "I must be going. Is there anything you will be needing?" Rayne was silent for a moment, not sure if she should ask for anything. Finally, one need rose in her mind, and it was something she desperately wanted.

"A warm bath, if it will not be too much trouble."

"No, no trouble at all, your highness. Your wish is my command." And she left.

Rayne leaned back onto the pillows. _How did I get here? Where am I even?_ The moon necklace penetrated her thoughts. Desperatly she grasped her neck, relieved to find the necklace still there. She untied it with shaking fingers and examined it. _It was this, wasn't it? This is what brought me here. But what triggered it? _She began to wrack her mind for anything that could have triggered. Nothing came to her mind except that phrase. _Was it the phrase that did it?_

An idea then struck her. Holding the necklace in front of her, she closed her eyes, reciting the phrase, hoping against hope that it would take her home. She waited until impatience settled in her. Slowly she cracked her eyes, wishing to see the familiar surroundings of her home. But all she saw was the brilliant white of her new surroundings. _Maybe I need the music box as well._

Slight depression began to settled deep within her heart as she placed the pendent back around her neck. She missed her home, her friends, but most of all she missed the familiarity of it all. She had taken everything for granted, and unfortunately, that old saying was true: You never miss it until it's gone.

Rayne sighed as a single tear slid down her cheek. For the moment, she would just have to make do with what she had.

After many maids had scrubbed her body, even though Rayne said she could do it on her own, she was dragged out of the bathing room and literally shoved into a highly ornate white dress. It was beautiful, with silver blossoms and pearls sewn into the fabric, but it was not very comfortable.

Currently, she was sitting in front of the white vanity as Muina styled her hair.

"Muina," Rayne said, hesitantly.

"Yes, Princess Evana?" The blonde woman replied. Rayne flinched at the name. "Is something wrong? I felt you flinch."

"Oh, it's nothing. I was just wondering, do I really have to where this dress? It isn't very comfortable."

"Your highness, you know your father insists that you dress to your status." And as she finished her statement, she placed a fairly large, very heavy crown of silver roses on her head. "And if you do not uphold his wishes, there will be consequences." '_Hmmm, I'm not sure I like this king. I'd better try to avoid crossing blades with him_.

A thought then pushed its way to the top of Raynes mind. "Muina? Have you seen my music box?"

"What does it look like?" Muina asked, placing some final pins in Rayne's hair.

"It has…" _What was that language called?_ "elvish inscriptions and played the most beautiful music I have ever heard."

"No, your highness, I am sorry to say I haven't. But you could always ask the elves to make you another one, if you can find one to talk to." She said matter-of-factly.

"Elves?!"

"Yes, your highness. Elves." Muina said, confused by her outburst. "Though they are not on too friendly terms with us. So you might not have much luck." _Well sure, why am I so surprised? If there is elvish, there must be elves. But still....elves...._

Rayne stayed silent as Muina brushed the hair that was not pinned up. When she was finished she took her leave, giving Rayne some time to sort through her thoughts. _Why happened to the music box? Why isn't it here with me, like the necklace? Maybe it's just lying around somewhere in the palace. I need to go look for it, and if I can't find it, then I'll find an elf._

With those thoughts, Rayne stood. She needed to begin searching. The only problem was: _Where do I start?_


	3. Temporary Chapter

Hello everyone,

I know you have all been wondering where I've been or when I will be updating again. Well, to put your fears at ease, I have not abandoned this story. As a matter of fact, it is still a live thing writhing inside of me, waiting for release. So do not worry, there is still plenty more to come.

As to my long absence, technology may be significantly more advanced than ever, it still has its flaws. One of which, they break. And that is what happened. My computer had been suffering for quite some time, then one day it finally died. (excuse me while I laugh at the wording of the last sentence lol, ok moving on in life) Yes, my computer broke, sadly. So it took some time to get a new one. Then I noticed something odd about this new computer. Through all of its high tech equipment, it does not have a disk drive. And my story, Identity Crises, is saved on a disk. So I decided to take the disk to school and email it to myself.

So I patiently waited out the weekend and Columbus Day, until it was finally time to get up and go to school. But the fates have been against me. Upon awakening I found myself ill, with a touch of the flu. I also had some other odd symptoms, which turned out to be strep throat. My doctor is making me say at home for the rest of the week. So, I am afraid a little more waiting is in order. But I shall get the next chapter posted as soon as God may allow.

Moving on, since fanfiction does not allow me to post only Authors Notes, I am giving you a preview of my next coming story entitled: Bloodlust

"Have you ever had one of those moments when you don't want to look down? You absolutely, positively, not-in-a-million-years don't want to look down? But you do anyway. Yeah, it was one of those moments, and I wish I never had looked. Because I bet your 'don't look down' moment didn't consist of a half decayed hand reaching out from beyond the grave. Yeah, my day was going great."

Ok, so I admit, that summary was hastily thrown together, but I actually have a couple chapters done. Given that, it is still in the earliest stages of writing. It was inspired by the Anita Blake series by Laurell (sp?) Hamilton. I will probably start posting it after I am completely finished with Identity Crisis.

So, hopefully, I will be able to update soon.

Until Then,

Lost Before the Dawn


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